O'Farrell puts brakes on Moore's bicycle vision

The New South Wales Government is introducing changes that could curtail the Sydney Lord Mayor's plans to make the city more bicycle and pedestrian friendly.

Premier Barry O'Farrell has announced a joint planning committee to manage the city's transport issues.

The committee will include four representatives of the State Government and three from the City of Sydney.

"What this is about is using a model that's been shown for almost a generation to work for building developments in the CBD," Mr O'Farrell has told 702 ABC Sydney.

"What it's based on is just the bleeding obvious, which is that Sydney's CBD is important to everyone.

"Not just those who live in the city but those who work there every day, many of whom don't for instance have opportunities to ride their bikes from Penrith or Campbelltown and other places into the city."

But the Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, says she is surprised by the announcement, because council's powers are already limited.

"It's important that the Premier arms himself with the facts, rather than tabloid headlines," Ms Moore said.

"We don't really have any power that we're not given by the state, for example there is a traffic committee which is dominated by state representatives now and any decision we make about transport or traffic in the city has to go through that committee."